In New Orleans, murdered toddlers are laid to rest on Friday

Siblings Kelsey Adams, 4, and Kendall Adams, 3, shared one last thing as brother and sister on Friday: a coffin. The toddlers were laid to rest together, side by side in their casket, as their families mourned.

A vigil for the children Thursday night at the scene of their deaths drew a crowd of neighbors, family members and friends. And, as the vigil ended and everyone trickled away, Kenneth Adams, 29, Kelsey and Kendall's father, appeared.

"I want my kids to be a symbol, to let the whole world know to watch your loved ones if they are diagnosed with that disease," Kenneth Adams said. "Show more love and affection, make sure they get the proper treatment, proper everything."

Chelsea Thornton, 23, shot their son in the head and drowned their daughter in the bathtub, on Oct. 17, according to police. Thornton had suffered from bipolar disorder and schizophrenia and had recently stopped taking her medication, her mother said later.

Kenneth Adams, 29, the father of Kelsey and Kendall Adams, is supported by his cousin Stella Adams as he gazes for the first time at the memorial to his children outside the apartment where they were killed Oct. 17. Photographed on Thursday, October 25, 2012.
Naomi Martin, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune

Echoing what many friends and relatives have said, Adams said he would have never thought Chelsea Thornton, who had no history of violence or criminal acts, could have been capable of such brutality.